This invention relates to the interfolding of sheets and the separating of the interfolded sheets into bundles. One commercial application of the invention is in the interfolding of paper sheets, such as facial tissue, and the formation of individual bundles of folded sheets. The individual bundles are typically then packaged for commercial sale.
Apparatus and methods are known for interfolding facial tissue and the like automatically. U.S. Pat. No. 2,468,254 Deloye shows conventional techniques for forming folded creases in facial tissue. U.S. Pat. No. 2,761,677 to Rutkus et al. teaches an overall process and apparatus for forming the sheets from separate webs, folding the sheets to form an interfolded stack, having slip sheets at predetermined locations where bundles are to be separated, and subsequently separating the bundles according to the locations of the slip sheets. U.S. Pat. No. 2,675,747 to Greiner et al. teaches separating devices at the discharge area of the folding mechanism for separating quantities of the folded sheets into individual bundles. U.S. Pat. No. 4,190,241 to Krueger teaches also the separation of individual quantities of C-folded sheets at the discharge area of the folding mechanism. U.S. Pat. No. 4,508,527 to Uno et al. also teaches the separating of folded sheets into individual bundles.
It is seen that the above references all teach apparatus and processes for forming discrete bundles wherein the separation into discrete bundles takes place entirely after the folding of the sheets.
It is an object of this invention to provide apparatus and processes for folding sheets and simultaneously separating the folded sheets into discrete bundles, where the separating is initiated before the sheets are deposited onto the stack of folded sheets.